


Mistletoe (an obligation to french kiss the first person you see)

by Sparklyfairymira (myonetruelove)



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Christmas, Christmas Fluff, F/M, Fluff, Holidays, Kid Fic, Minor Octavia Blake/Lincoln, Parent Bellamy Blake, Single Parent Bellamy Blake, Winter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-02
Updated: 2020-12-02
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:21:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 18,002
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27830680
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/myonetruelove/pseuds/Sparklyfairymira
Summary: Clarke is supposed to have a whole week off over Christmas, but Roan bribes her with a cabin in the mountains if she can write one article for him while she's on vacation. The only problem? Turns out the cabin was double-booked by Bellamy and his daughter. Hijinks ensue and Clarke ends up stranded with the Blakes.Or the one where Clarke and Bellamy fall in love over Christmas and a shared cabin.
Relationships: Bellamy Blake/Clarke Griffin, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 130
Collections: bellarkescord advent calendar





	Mistletoe (an obligation to french kiss the first person you see)

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone!!! Here is my first Christmas fic of the season (yes, there will be more)!! This was written for thebellarkes discord server event: Advent Calendar. Congrats to those of you who guessed correctly that it was indeed me who wrote it!! It is also inspired by the Hallmark movie 'Christmas Getaway'. Because I'm obsessed with Hallmark Christmas movies.
> 
> In case you didn't know, I am taking part in the 100 writers for BLM and we are still taking prompts! Please check out [our carrd here](t100fic-for-blm.carrd.co) to see what we're all about. Is there a Christmas fic you'd love to read? A New Years' story you want to read? A song you KNOW needs to be made into a video? Or want a fic trailer done for your fic (because I'm getting quite good at those lol). If you want to donate, but don't know what to prompt we've got you covered there too.
> 
> If you're interested in seeing what else I'm writing and what my planned publication dates for that is, please check out my Tumblr post [HERE](https://sparklyfairymira.tumblr.com/post/632973715782729728/prompt-fic-updates).

**December 17**

Clarke closes her laptop with a sigh. Thank God it’s time for vacation—she needs it. A week away from the hustle and bustle, it’s just what she needs. It’s not that she doesn’t love her job—she gets paid to travel to different places and write about it. What’s not to love? She just needs some time to unwind.

“Clarke?” Roan knocks on her door before stepping into her office. 

Clarke looks up from where she is shoving her laptop into its bag, lifting a brow. “Come to wish me luck on my week of relaxation?”

“About that.” Roan looks uncomfortable as he comes to sit in the chair on the other side of her desk. 

“Uh uh.” Clarke shakes her head. “I am not canceling my vacation. Whatever you need, find someone else.”

Roan laughs. “I wouldn’t ask you to cancel your vacation, but I need a favor.”

Clarke narrows her eyes as she watches him. Roan is her editor, but he’s also one of her best friends. He knows what this vacation means to her. But he’s also the boss so she’s only slightly worried about what favor he’s going to ask of her.

“Finn is stuck in Alaska.” Roan rolls his eyes—neither of them is a fan of Finn’s. 

“Again?” Clarke scoffs. “How is it that he always ends up stuck in the most remote places? I never get stuck in remote places. He’s an idiot.”

Roan is obviously trying to keep in his laughter, but it’s not working. He’s not supposed to show favoritism amongst his writers, but considering the shit that Finn has pulled in the past Clarke thinks it’s well deserved. 

Finn had started working at  _ Adventure Travel _ straight out of college. He’d been one of Roan’s first hires when he’d taken over for his mom. Clarke had been his second just six months later. What neither of them had known was that Finn had a fiancée. Which would have been good for Clarke to know when she’d started dating him a month after she’d started. When Raven had shown up to surprise Finn it had been a surprise to all of them. That had been over five years ago. 

Since then Roan has married Raven and they have two kids. He’s always trying to come up with reasons to fire Finn, but Clarke keeps pointing out that it’s a lawsuit waiting to happen. So they both continue to work with Finn—although Roan might send him on the worst assignments, something that he, Raven, and Clarke love to laugh about.

Roan clears his throat. “That’s neither here nor there. He was supposed to write a piece on an old-fashioned Christmas, but I can’t trust that he’ll have it done on time and to me with the spotty reception up there. So I need you to write it for me.”

“Vacation means no work, Roan.” Clarke rolls her eyes. It’s not like she’s going to tell him no—how can she? But she sure can make him feel like shit about it.

Roan nods. “I know and I’m sorry, but to make up for it I booked you a cabin in Sanctum.” He pulls his phone out, messing with it for a moment before handing it over to her. “Paid for by King Industries.”

Clarke takes the phone and flips through the pictures of the cabin. It’s gorgeous and much better than her plan to sit in her apartment and veg for a week. She lets out an exasperated sigh. “You’re lucky I love you.” She pauses. “I’m surprised you were able to book a cabin in Sanctum this late. That’s the holiday destination.”

“I know.” Roan shrugs. “Which is why I thought it would be the perfect place to send you for you to be inspired.”

Clarke considers him for a moment. “You do know that I know nothing about old-fashioned Christmases right? My family has never had an old-fashioned Christmas.”

“Maybe not, but you’re great at research and again you’re going to be in the holiday go-to destination so I’m sure you’ll do great.” Roan grins as he takes his phone back from her. “Does this mean you’ll do it?”

“Like there was any question about whether I would do it or not.” Clarke rolls her eyes. “You better be lucky I love you. And you get to be the one to explain to Raven and the kids why I won’t be there for Christmas again.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” Roan dismisses her words with a wave of his hand. “They’ll be fine. They can see you for New Year’s.”

Clarke laughs. “I’m still not telling them. Email me the details about the cabin and where I need to go, will you? I guess I need to go home and pack.” She stands up grabbing her stuff.

Roan comes around the desk to sweep her up into a hug. “Thank you, you’re a lifesaver. I don’t know what I would do without you. This is why you’re my favorite person.”

“I’m telling Raven you said that.” Clarke laughs again as she returns the hug. “Now let me go so I can get home. And you’re buying drinks the next time we go out.”

Roan squeezes her once more before releasing her. “It’s a deal. And who knows? Maybe you’ll have a good time.”

“Maybe.” Clarke bumps her shoulder into him as she passes. “You’d better hope I do or I’m taking another vacation in January to make up for this one.”

“Deal.”

* * *

**December 18**

Clarke drives slowly down the street, head ducking as she tries to read the signs of the businesses. She’s looking for someplace called Sweets Eatery. Apparently, the guy Roan had rented the cabin from also runs the local bakery/candy store. An interesting combination.

“Ah-ha!” Clarke cries out in triumph as she sees the sign. She starts scanning for a parking spot, quickly parallel parking her ‘65 Ford Mustang. As she climbs out snow begins to fall and she smiles. She loves the snow. Living in Arkadia she doesn’t get to see a lot of it—not that she’s home much with work. 

Clarke pulls her jacket closed, glad for her scarf. The one thing about snow is that it means that it’s cold as shit. She heads to Sweets Eatery which is much busier than she’d anticipated and it smells amazing. She makes her way to the end of the line, flipping through her phone until she finds the email from Roan. She’s looking for a Jasper Jordan.

The line moves pretty fast and within five minutes she’s at the counter. She smiles at the young Asian man who is looking at her expectantly. “Ummm, I’ll take a hot chocolate to go and I’m looking for Jasper Jordan?”

The young man, whose name tag reads Monty, punches something onto the screen in front of him. “That’ll be $3.50.” He takes the money that Clarke hands him before turning to yell over his shoulder, “Jas! Someone to see you! Bring her a hot chocolate!” He smiles at her. “Both your hot chocolate and Jasper should be right out.”

“Thank you, Monty.” Clarke steps off to the side to wait, eyes panning the room. It’s packed, all of the tables are full and on the other side of the shop, people are browsing a large variety of candy. She’ll need to make a point to come back eventually to see what all they carry.

“Hi, you were looking for me?” A young, thin man with wide eyes, crazy hair, and a big smile pops up in front of her.

Clarke starts for a moment. “Yeah, I’m Clarke Griffin. My boss booked a cabin for me through you.” She takes the hot chocolate that Jasper is offering her.

“Oh, of course. Come with me.” Jasper waves for her to follow him. He leads her into the candy section of the shop, weaving between displays and people as he heads towards a counter in the back.

“Jasper!” A young woman suddenly appears at his side. “The decorations for the window are destroyed.”

Jasper comes to a stop, turning his attention to the girl. “What do you mean the decorations are destroyed, Harper?”

Harper shrugs. “I’m guessing that it’s from the pipe that burst.”

Jasper sighs, annoyance written all over his face. “Well, we’ll figure out something.” He glances over his shoulder at Clarke. “Sorry, come with me.” He continues walking, dragging Harper with him as they continue to talk.

Clarke shakes her head as she follows them. She stops at the counter when the two of them slip behind it. They keep talking, almost as if they’d forgotten she is there. Clarke rolls her eyes, telling herself to be patient. They’re obviously having some kind of a crisis.

“What are we going to do Jasper?” Harper asks. “Those decorations were special orders. There’s no way we’re going to be able to get the windows done in time.”

“I don’t know, I guess we’ll have to see what decorations they still have in town.” Jasper shrugs.

Harper throws her hands up, obviously frustrated. “Jas, Lincoln made those for us! We can’t use some store-bought decorations after using those for years.”

“Well, maybe Lincoln can make us more.” 

Harper laughs. “Yeah, right. He’s working on something right now. He doesn’t have time for that. We’re so screwed.”

Clarke clears her throat. “What do you guys need for the windows?”

Jasper and Harper turn to stare at her dumbfounded—they’d forgotten she was there. Great. 

“Oh! Your key. I’m so sorry. Give me a second.” Jasper ducks down and starts digging around under the counter.

Harper leans against the counter and smiles at Clarke. “Hi, I’m Harper.”

“Clarke.” She pauses. “So the window decorations?”

“Oh, we always go all out the week of Christmas.” Harper frowns. “One of the local artists, Lincoln, had made us some decals for the window and they were amazing. But they’re ruined now.”

Clarke nods. “Well, I can’t do decals but if you guys don’t want to use store-bought stuff, I usually do the windows at my friend’s shop for the holidays.”

Jasper’s head pops up from behind the counter. “Seriously?”

“Jasper! Something’s on fire in the kitchen!” Monty yells.

“Crap.” Jasper jumps up and is gone. 

Clarke sighs. Maybe she’ll get the key to her cabin eventually. 

Harper’s eyes are as wide as her smile. “Are you serious about the windows?”

“Yeah, of course. I don’t get to use my creativity like that often so I’d love to. I assume you guys have somewhere in town that sells chalk markers?” Clarke doesn’t know why she offered to help, but it’s Christmas time—that’s what the season is all about after all.

Harper nods. “Oh for sure. We have an amazing art supply store just up the road. I’m sure Jasper could pay you. Hell, I’ll pay you. I don’t want to listen to Jaha complain about our unimaginative decorating again.”

“Jaha?” Clarke questions.

“Oh, he’s the mayor and he’s  _ very _ into Christmas. You really are saving us. ” Harper shoots her a smile. “So what brings you in today to save our asses?”

Clarke laughs. “Well, I’m supposed to be getting a key to a cabin that my boss rented for me.”

“Sorry.” Harper frowns. “Jasper is a great boss, but he’s a little scatterbrained.” She shakes her head, picking up a tablet. “What’s the name on the reservation?”

Clarke looks at her phone to double-check. “It looks like it’s under Roan King.”

“Oh, there you are! Got it.” Harper ducks down to rummage under the counter, popping back up a moment later with a key in her hand. “Let me just grab you a brochure. It’ll tell you how to get there and some information about the events going on in town this week.” She turns around and grabs a pamphlet before handing both to Clarke. 

“Thank you so much. I can’t tell you how excited I am about this cabin.” Clarke shoots her a smile.

Harper returns the smile. “And I can’t tell you how excited we are to have you help us with the windows.” She pauses, making a face. “And not to sound ungrateful, but when do you think you could work on those for us?”

Clarke glances at her phone. It’s just after twelve. “How about I go get settled and then swing by after dinner? Are you guys open that late?”

“Yeah, we’re open until eight. As long as you’re here by then it’s fine. Monty and I can hang out and keep your company if you’re here after closing.” Harper walks around the counter and pulls Clarke in for a hug.

Clarke is surprised but does return the hug. She wonders if this is a small town thing or a Harper thing. If this were to happen in Arkadia the hugger would likely get punched. Clarke gives Harper a smile when she pulls away. “Sounds great. Guess I’ll see you later.” Clarke heads for the door, sending a wave to Jasper as he flies past her causing her to giggle.

She jumps back in her car, opening the brochure to see that there are in fact directions, but she chooses to punch the address into her GPS instead. It’s good to have the directions as a backup, but Google is generally pretty reliable. 

It takes about fifteen minutes for Clarke to navigate the winding roads, but once she pulls up in front of the cabin she can’t help but smile. It really is beautiful—especially set against the falling snow. She grabs her laptop bag and suitcase from the trunk and heads inside. It’s everything she imagined and more. This week is going to be great—even if she has to spend part of it working. 

There’s a large fireplace in the living room and she decides that starting a fire is her first order of business—not that she’s ever built a fire, but it can’t be that hard right? It takes her longer than she’d like to admit, but eventually, she has a roaring fire. “Excellent.”

Clarke guesses now would be a good time to take a tour, figure out where she’ll set up for writing and which room she wants to sleep in. She leaves her suitcase by the staircase and heads upstairs. Three bedrooms when she only needs one is a bit excessive, but that’s Roan. There’s even a little office area in the attic. That’ll be a great place to write.

A noise from downstairs has Clarke’s hair standing on end. What the hell? She creeps down the stairs, looking for anything she can use as a weapon. As she reaches the bottom of the stairs an extremely attractive guy steps into the living room. His curly hair is inky black, a pair of glasses perched on his nose. And the freckles. 

_ Down girl. He’s an intruder. _ Clarke runs at him yelling, kicking at him but loses her balance and hits the floor.

“What the hell?” The guy jumps back and stares down at her.

Clarke groans.  _ Idiot.  _ She shakes her head as she sits up. “What are you doing in my cabin?”

“Your cabin?” The guy’s eyebrows shoot up. “This is our cabin.”

“Our cabin?” Clarke asks as the back door opens and a young girl steps inside. Clarke would guess she is about six or seven—not that she’s great with guessing kid’s ages. “What the hell kind of person breaks into a house with a kid?”

“I did not break in!” The guy shakes his head. “I rented this cabin.”

“No,  _ I _ rented this cabin.” Clarke pauses. “Okay, my boss rented this cabin, but he rented it for me.”

The guy reaches into his pocket, pulling out his cell phone. “Here’s my booking reservation.” He hands her the phone.

Clarke squints at it, but sure enough, it says that he’s rented the same cabin she has. She hands him his phone back before pulling her own out. She finds the confirmation and then hands the phone to him. “Here’s mine.”

“Daddy? What’s going on?” the little girl asks. 

The guy looks at Clarke’s phone before handing it back to her, glancing at his daughter. “There appears to be some kind of mix up.” He holds out his hand. “Let me help you up.”

Clarke sighs, taking his hand and letting him help her up. Her eyes are drawn to his arms where she can see his muscles bunch as he pulls her to his feet. Damn. “So now what?”

“Why don’t we head to Sweets Eatery and see if Jasper can’t work this out.” The guy shakes his head. “I’m Bellamy, by the way, and this is my daughter, Selene.”

“Clarke.” She smiles at Selene. “It’s nice to meet you.”

“You too.” The girl smiles at her, showing a missing front tooth. 

“Alright, I’ll meet you at Sweets Eatery.” Clarke heads for the door, annoyed. Can anything go her way? First, she ends up with an assignment on her vacation—an assignment that is so far outside of her comfort zone it’s not even funny—and now the cabin that Roan promised her has been double booked. Clarke is not amused.

* * *

“What do you mean there are no other cabins?” Bellamy demands.

Jasper shrugs. “It’s Christmastime in Sanctum. I’m not sure what you’re expecting. The only reason there was an available cabin at all is because there was a last-minute cancelation.”

“Jasper, the cat’s in the shop again,” Monty yells from the bakery side.

“That stupid cat. I’m going to kill it,” Jasper mutters.

Selene gasps. “You’re going to kill the cat?”

Jasper’s eyes are wide as he glances down at Selene. “No, of course not. I would never. It’s just an expression.” He looks between Clarke and Bellamy. “I really am sorry and I’ll happily refund one of you, but there aren’t any other cabins.” He glances to the side as Harper calls for him. “I don’t even know how this could’ve happened in the first place.”

Clarke scoffs, muttering under her breath. “Yeah, no idea how that happened.” She shakes her head. “Well, is there a hotel or a B&B? Anywhere I can get a room.”

“Yeah, no.” Jasper laughs. “Did you miss the part where I said it was Christmastime in Sanctum? Everything’s been booked for months.”

“Great.” Clarke rolls her eyes as Jasper walks away before turning to Bellamy. “So, now what?”

Bellamy glances at her before looking back at his daughter. “Well, I mean obviously one of us will have to give up the cabin. And Selene was pretty insistent on us coming here for Christmas. I’d hate to disappoint her. Not to mention my sister is on her way here already.”

Clarke narrows her eyes at him. “That’s low, playing the kid card.” She smiles down at Selene. “But of course, you’re right. I’ll head home. You guys are going to have a great Christmas.” 

Clarke shakes her head as she walks toward the door, suddenly realizing that she’d told Harper that she would decorate the windows. She glances out the windows to see that the snow has begun to fall harder. She’s afraid that if she doesn’t leave now then she won’t be able to make it home. She veers over to where Harper is stocking candy on a shelf.

“Hey, Harper?” 

Harper glances over, grinning when she sees her. “Clarke! You’re earlier than I was anticipating.”

“About that,” Clarke sighs. “Turns out Jasper double booked me and someone else in the cabin so I don’t have anywhere to stay so I’m going to head home. I’d do the windows first, but with the snow coming down as bad as it is I think I need to head home.”

“Oh no.” Harper frowns. “I can’t believe that he double booked the cabin. I’m sorry, Clarke, and of course. We’ll figure something out. Drive safe. It was really nice to meet you and I hope that you’ll come back to see us sometime soon.”

Clarke waves to Harper as she heads for the door. She curses to herself as she steps outside. The snow is really coming down—which is not what she wants to be driving in. But it’s fine. She hurries over to her car and jumps inside, glad that she grabbed her bags before leaving the cabin. She sticks the keys in the ignition, shivering. The heat better not act up today. There’s no way she can deal with shivering the entire way home. 

Clarke turns the key, but instead of starting it just clicks. “No. No. No.” Clarke slams her hands down on the steering wheel before taking a deep breath and trying again. “Great, just what I needed.” Clarke lays her head on the steering wheel. Now, what is she supposed to do?

A knock on her window causes her to jump. She turns her head to see Bellamy and Selene standing there. She rolls down the window quickly.

“Car problems?” Bellamy asks.

Clarke shrugs, not wanting to admit that there is a serious problem. “She gets temperamental when it’s cold.”

“Sounds like it’s something more serious,” Bellamy says. “Sounds like the alternator.”

Clarke frowns. “How can you tell?”

“The clicking.” Bellamy laughs. “Come on, that’s not something that’s going to be able to be fixed tonight. Why don’t we go back in and have someone call a tow truck? You can stay at the cabin tonight. Octavia won’t be here until tomorrow anyways.”

“I don’t want to intrude,” Clarke starts.

“Please, Clarke?” Selene begs. 

Bellamy raises his eyebrows as he watches her. “What else are you going to do? Sleep in your car?”

Clarke bites her lip, considering them. It’s true that there’s nowhere else for her to stay. It’s only a night and what are the chances of Bellamy being a serial killer when he has his daughter with him? She shrugs. “Sure. I appreciate it.” She pauses. “And if I’m going to be here I can do the windows for them if you guys don’t mind hanging out in town for a bit?”

“The windows?” Bellamy’s confusion is written all over his face.

Clarke laughs. “Apparently the Christmas decorations for Sweets Eatery got damaged so I offered to do their windows for them.”

“Oh!” Selene’s eyes light up. “Can I help? I love Christmas so much.”

“I don’t mind if your dad doesn’t mind.” Clarke shoots Selene a smile before turning to Bellamy.

“Sure.” Bellamy rolls his eyes. “I could go for a hot chocolate and something sweet anyway.” He opens the door for her.

Clarke quickly rolls up the window quickly, popping her trunk so that she can get her bags. She grabs her laptop bag and locks the car before climbing out. She stops when she sees that Bellamy has already grabbed her bag. “Thank you.”

He shoots her a smile. “It’s my pleasure. Lead the way.”

Clarke smiles to herself before offering her hand to Selene. “Shall we?” 

* * *

“Are you sure you don’t want to sleep in the extra room?” Bellamy asks as he sets down the blanket and pillow onto the couch.

Clarke shakes her head. “It’s fine. I should only be here for the night and no reason to dirty the sheets so they have to be changed before your sister gets here.”

Bellamy lets out a heavy sigh, his displeasure obvious. “Fine, I can see when I’m beaten.” 

Clarke ducks her head to hide her smile as she sets about making the couch into a bed. It’s a pretty comfortable couch and honestly, she can sleep anywhere so she’s not worried. Today has been very strange, but surprisingly enjoyable. Who knew that hanging out with a bunch of strangers could be such a good time? Certainly not her.

“Alright, well good night.” Bellamy clears his throat, standing there for a moment as if he had something to say, but he seems to change his mind. He shakes his head, sending her a quick wave before heading up the stairs.

Clarke flips off the lights before lying down. It’s going to take her a few minutes to go to sleep so she lets her mind wander. Selene is the sweetest child that Clarke has ever met—not that she’s had much interaction with children except for Raven and Roan’s kids. And then there’s her dad. Bellamy Blake is tall, dark, and handsome to the extreme. It’s been a hot minute since she’s dated a guy, but damn if she doesn’t want to jump on that.

_ Clarke, get that idea out of your head. You’re leaving tomorrow and then you’re never going to see him again. _ Clarke shakes her head. She needs to get her mind off that line of thought. Hadn’t she learned anything about getting attached after Lexa? Ugh.

Clarke turns onto her side, staring into the embers of the fire. Lexa is not where she wants her mind to be. Who breaks up with someone two weeks before Christmas? All because they’re not around enough. As if she wasn’t aware of Clarke’s job when they started dating—and the fact that traveling is in the title.

Great. Now she’s never going to be able to sleep. Maybe she can make herself some tea. That usually helps. Yes, tea would be good. Clarke slips out from under the blanket and heads into the kitchen. She tries to be as quiet as possible as she fills the kettle. After setting it on the stove she looks out the window, watching the snow fall. It’s beautiful.

As soon as the kettle starts to whistle, Clarke spins around to pull it off the stove so as to not disturb anyone. She jumps, almost dropping the kettle when she sees Bellamy standing there. She sets it onto another burner as her hand goes to her chest. “Are you trying to give me a heart attack?”

“Sorry.” Bellamy laughs. “You looked lost in thought and I didn’t want to disturb you.”

“So you stood there like a creep?” Clarke shakes her head, laughing as she goes about making her tea. She tries to not think about how he looks shirtless and mussed hair. How can he look that good? 

“Did you make enough to share?” Bellamy asks.

Clarke jumps, not realizing that he’d moved so close to her. She swallows before grinning at him over her shoulder. “Of course.” She pulls another cup down and gets his ready along with hers. “Here you go.” 

“Thanks. I could’ve done that myself you know.” Bellamy sets his cup down on the counter to let the tea steep. 

Clarke shrugs. “I was already making mine. It was no trouble.”

They fall into silence as Clarke’s gaze wanders out the window again. Why doesn’t she travel to places where it snows more often? This would’ve been a great place to work on her article. Sucks that she’s going to have to head home tomorrow. She lets out a sigh, forgetting that Bellamy is there.

“You okay?” he asks quietly.

Clarke shoots him a half-smile. “Yeah. Just thinking about how I bet this place is great at Christmastime.” She shrugs. “Guess I’ll just have to find out another year.”

“I’m sorry that it didn’t work out.” Bellamy picks up his cup, blowing on it slightly. “Couldn’t sleep?”

Clarke laughs. “Sadly no. Just a reminder of the past that pissed me off enough to keep me from going to sleep.” She pauses as she glances over at him and so what if her eyes linger longer than they should on his naked torso—she’s only human. “You?”

Bellamy scoffs. “Nightmares.” He doesn’t elaborate as he takes a drink of his tea.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Clarke bites her lip, wondering if she might have overstepped. 

“No.” Bellamy sighs. “But also yes.” He laughs. “Selene’s other dad, Steve, died about a year and a half ago. Yes, she’s adopted.”

Clarke’s eyes widen. Shit. Damn. Not what she was expecting. Also, of course, he’s gay. All the hot ones are. But he’s still nice to look at. “I’m so sorry for your loss—and I’m sorry for saying that. I know how much it sucks when people do that.” Clarke is babbling. She knows she is, but she can’t bring herself to stop. “You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”

“It’s fine.” Bellamy gives a small laugh, bordering on bitter. “There was a car accident—I was driving and Selene was in the car. It wasn’t my fault. Logically I know that. It was the asshole that was driving drunk, but that doesn’t stop the nightmares or the pain. Or the missing him.” He shakes his head. “Losing him was like losing a part of myself. And Selene is so young I’m afraid that she’s going to start forgetting him. And he loved her so much.”

Without thinking, Clarke reaches out and lays a hand on his arm. His eyes flick down to where she’s touching him, but he doesn’t move away. “I understand that, believe it or not.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah.” Clarke looks away as she fights the tears that are filling her eyes. “My dad died when I was sixteen, also in a car accident and I was driving.” She turns to face Bellamy again, a sad smile on her lips. “Even when it’s not your fault you can’t help but blame yourself. If they’d been driving or if you’d gone a different way. Just one little thing and maybe they’d still be alive.”

Bellamy’s hand lands on hers where it is still resting on his arm. “Hey, you can’t think that way. There’s no way to change what’s already happened. No matter how much we’d like to.” He squeezes her hand. “Is that why you couldn’t sleep?”

“I wish,” Clarke scoffs. “No, I was thinking about my ex. She decided to break up with me a week ago.”

“Ouch.” Bellamy shakes his head. “What happened?”

“She said I traveled too much and wasn’t here enough.” 

Bellamy narrows his eyes. “But I thought you said you were a travel writer?”

“Exactly!” Clarke laughs. “It’s fine. The fact that I’m more upset with the reason she broke up with me versus her actually breaking up with me says a lot. Obviously, she wasn’t the one.”

“Well, I’m sure you’ll find the right woman one day.” Bellamy steps back, removing his hand from hers so that it drops. 

Clarke shrugs. “Or man. I’m bi.”

“Oh.” Is Clarke reading into this or does he sound excited? “Me too.”

“As all the best people are.” Clarke grins before she goes back to looking out the window as she sips on her tea. How did this conversation end up getting so personal? Not that she minds, but damn she’s known this man for what? Ten hours? 

Bellamy moves to the sink, rinsing out his cup. “Well, I’m going to try to head back to bed. Thank you for the tea. Sleep well.”

“You too.” Clarke watches as he heads back upstairs. He really is hot. She shakes her head, trying to get her mind off of his hotness. She downs the rest of her tea, wincing at the heat before she heads back to the couch. Her eyes feel heavy as she lays her head on the pillow. She doesn’t know if it’s from the tea or the conversation, but sleep seems much easier now. 

* * *

**December 19**

Clarke wakes slowly, blinking against the light streaming in through the windows. She jumps a bit when she sees Selene sitting on the coffee table, watching her. “Uh, hi. Good morning.”

“You drool while you sleep,” Selene says with a smile.

“Uh…” Clarke wipes her chin, not at all surprised when her hand comes away wet. “Yeah, I’ve done that my whole life.”

Selene shrugs. “Okay.” She picks up Clarke’s phone and hands it to her. “Your phone has been vibrating.”

“Thanks.” Clarke takes the phone and sees that she missed three calls. There’s one from Roan and another from Raven. The last one is from a number she doesn’t know. She dials her voicemail, skipping the messages from Roan and Raven for now.

_ “Miss Griffin? This is Miles Shaw from Shaw Motors. I wanted to let you know that it is your alternator which unfortunately for this model is going to take a few days for me to get part. I know you said that you were trying to get home, but it’ll be three days before I get the part. But I promise as soon as I get the part in I will get it put in and get you on your way. So it should be ready no later than Tuesday so you’ll have plenty of time to get home before Christmas. If you have any questions or concerns please let me know.” _

“Great.” Clarke drops her head.

“What’s wrong?” Bellamy asks from behind her causing her to jump. 

Damn it, he needs to stop sneaking up on her. She twists around, a wry smile on her lips. “It’s the alternator.”

“Ha! I knew it.” Bellamy shoots her a smile. “But that’s good, it’s a fairly easy fix.”

Clarke scoffs. “Unless you drive a ‘65 Mustang. Then apparently they can’t get the part for three days. So now I’m stranded until Tuesday.”

“Does that mean you’ll be staying with us?” Selene asks as she jumps up from the coffee table.

“Oh, I couldn’t impose-”

“I don’t know about-”

Clarke and Bellamy look at one another for a beat before they both burst out into laughter. Selene looks between the two, confusion obvious.

“Look, we both know there’s nowhere else for you to stay,” Bellamy says as he runs a hand through Selene’s hair. “There’s not really anywhere else for you to go so, of course, you’ll stay here. Unfortunately, you’ll have to stay on the couch, but it’s better than sleeping outside.”

Clarke laughs. “I guess you’re right. And really the couch is just fine. Thank you.”

“Daddy, can we get started on my list now?” Selene jumps up and down excited.

Bellamy nods. “Sure, go grab it and we’ll see what we’re going to do first.”

Clarke watches Selene run up the stairs before turning back to Bellamy. “Are you sure you’re okay with this? If you’re not I’ll figure something out.”

“I’m sure.” Bellamy shakes his head. “I don’t know what kind of person you think I am that I’d kick you out the week of Christmas.”

Clarke laughs. “The kind that I don’t want to take advantage of.” She pauses. “So what list is it that Selene is talking about?”

“It’s a list of all the things she wants to do while we’re here for it to be the perfect Christmas.” Bellamy shrugs. “Coffee should be done in a minute, would you like a cup?”

“Sure.” Clarke falls silent as she watches him walk into the kitchen. At least he has a shirt on this time. But even fully clothed he is distracting. This should be an interesting next few days.

“Got it, Daddy!” Selene yells as she runs down the stairs. Instead of heading into the kitchen, she heads back to Clarke. “Do you want to see my list?”

“Don’t bother Clarke, Selene. She just woke up,” Bellamy chides her, ducking under the cabinets so he can see them. “How do you take your coffee?”

Clarke shakes her head. “She’s no bother. Let’s see this list. And just black, thanks.”

  
Selene hands the list to her as Bellamy sits down beside her, two cups of coffee in his hands. Clarke takes the one he offers to her and takes a sip as she looks at the list.

  


“Wow, this is an amazing list, Selene.” Clarke hands the list back as she sips at her coffee. “It looks like you’re going to have a ton of fun. And at least you can check off number one since you’re in the mountains.”

“Oh!” Selene runs over to the table and grabs a pen, marking on the paper before coming back. “So what next then?”

“I think the first thing we should do is go get a tree—we’re going to cut down our own tree. Auntie O is bringing the ornaments so if we go now we can set it up by the time she gets here and then decorate tonight.” Bellamy smiles at his daughter. “Go put on some warmer clothes and we’ll head out.” He turns back to Clarke. “You can come with us if you’d like.”

Clarke bites her lip, glancing at her laptop as Selene runs back upstairs. She should really start working on her article, but honestly, she doesn’t even know where to start. And getting a tree is a part of a traditional Christmas, right? She shrugs. “If you wouldn’t mind. The article I have to write is about a traditional Christmas which isn’t something I ever had so this could be helpful.”

“What do you mean you’ve never had a traditional Christmas?” Bellamy frowns.

“Well my mom worked with Doctors Without Borders and my dad was a military contractor while I was growing up so we were very rarely in the US for the holidays. We just celebrated in whatever country we were in.” Clarke shrugs. She never thought that she’d been missing out on anything while she was growing up, but now she wonders if she did. 

“Huh.” Bellamy doesn’t say anything else as he sips from his coffee.

Clarke narrows her eyes at him. “What does that huh mean?” 

Bellamy shrugs. “Just trying to figure out how you’re going to write about something you’ve never experienced.”

“That’s why I came to Sanctum. They have a lot of traditional Christmas experiences that I figured could help me out.” She laughs. “And since I’m stuck here for the next few days at least I’ll be able to experience some of them.”

Bellamy shakes his head. “No, you’re going to stay through Christmas.” He holds his hand up when she opens her mouth to argue. “You deserve to have at least one traditional Christmas.”

Clarke laughs. “You are far too kind for your own good. Who invites a stranger to spend Christmas with them?”

“Someone who knows how lonely the holidays can be on your own.” Bellamy smiles, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. “Christmas is about giving and I want to help give you the Christmas you never had. Not to mention that Selene has somehow managed to get attached to you already. I think it would break her heart if you left before Christmas.”

Clarke considers him for a moment, trying to figure out if he’s being genuine. She’s sure that he is but she’s also not used to people acting with this level of kindness. And does she really want to be around him for the next week thirsting over him? Because she’s sure that the attraction isn’t going to dull. She shrugs. “I’d like that.”

“Good. Then go get dressed. We’ll leave as soon as you’re ready.” Bellamy heads back to the kitchen as Clarke moves to her bag, smiling to herself.

This isn’t how she’d been expecting her vacation to go, but at the same time, she’s not disappointed. She likes Selene, she’s a sweet kid. And her dad? Well, her dad is not only hot but also nice—a deadly combination. But she thinks this will be good for her and for writing her article. 

  
  


Clarke walks slightly behind Bellamy and Selene, breathing in the cool mountain air. The tree farm is beautiful with snow on the ground and on the trees. It’s quiet this far out of town, not that the town is as bustling as Arkadia. This is what she thinks of when she thinks of the mountains. 

“So which one should we pick, Daddy?” Selens asks.

Bellamy glances back to Clarke, winking. “I guess that’s up to you ladies. I’m just here for muscle.”

Selene grins up at her dad before dropping his hand and skipping back to Clarke. She slides her hand into Clarke’s as she looks up at her. “Do you know how to pick out a Christmas tree?”

“Well, I thought we just picked out the biggest, prettiest tree. Isn’t that how it works?” Clarke shrugs. 

Selene considers her for a moment before nodding. “That makes sense.” She falls silent as they begin weaving between trees looking for the best tree. Suddenly she stops. “What about this one?”

Clarke taps her chin as she looks at it. It’s not the biggest tree—which is good because the biggest probably wouldn’t fit in the cabin—but it looks full and pretty. “I think you’re right, Selene. I think this is the one.” She turns to Bellamy. “Muscle?”

Selene giggles as Bellamy shoots Clarke an unamused look. “Well, since you need to know what it’s like to have a traditional Christmas, maybe you should cut it down?”

“Yeah, no. Not happening.” Clarke shakes her head. “Oh, wait! Before we cut it down we should get pictures of the two of you.” Clarke ushers Selene to stand next to Bellamy before pulling out her phone and snapping a few pictures.”

“What about you?” Selene asks.

Clarke frowns, but shrugs. “Sure I guess we can get close and do a selfie.” It’s only mildly weird that she takes pictures with them, right? Not any weirder than staying in a cabin with them she guesses. She walks over and they squeeze together so she can get the picture taken. 

“Alright, now the two of you stand back, okay?” Bellamy says, waiting until Clarke and Selene are backed away before he starts to cut down the tree. 

Selene hangs onto Clarke’s hand as they watch Bellamy use the saw, cheering when the tree falls to the ground. Clarke is grateful that she can’t see the muscles working in Bellamy’s arms thanks to the jacket he wears. The last thing she needs to do is thirst over him while his daughter is holding onto her hand. They follow Bellamy back through the trees as they make their way to the Blakes’ SUV, Bellamy tying it to the roof.

“Selene!” A young boy calls out, waving.

Selene’s head turns and she grins when she sees him. “Alex!” She turns to Bellamy. “Can I go say high to Alex and Ms. Martin?”

Bellamy looks down to see that the pair is already heading toward them. “I think they’re on their way. Why don’t you just wait here?”

Selene is practically bouncing as she waits, still holding onto Clarke’s hand. Clarke takes the time to assess the beautiful woman and the boy that she assumes is his son heading toward them. She is beautiful, dark curls flowing down her back and a bright smile on her lips.

As soon as Alex is about ten feet away Selene drops Clarke’s hand and races to him, hugging him. She then grabs his hand and drags him back to where Clarke is standing. “Clarke! This is my best friend, Alex, and his mom, Ms. Martin. Alex, this is Clarke. She’s staying with us.”

The woman’s eyes narrow slightly as she looks at Clarke, but extends her hand to her. “Gina.”

“It’s nice to meet you both.” Clarke shakes Gina’s hand before doing the same to Alex. The young boy looks delighted when she shakes his hand, beaming with pride. 

“Hey, Gina. Alex.” Bellamy grins as he steps up beside Clarke. 

Gina’s smile brightens when she turns to Bellamy. “I’m glad that you guys made it alright. I was going to text you later. I got four tickets to  _ The Nutcracker  _ tonight. I thought that we could bring the kids.” Her smile dims only slightly as she turns to Clarke. “I didn’t realize you had someone staying with you.”

“There was a mixup with the cabin and it got double booked.” Bellamy shakes his head. “Then poor Clarke’s car broke down so she’s staying with us.”

“Oh.” Gina turns back to Bellamy, dismissing Clarke as she lays a hand on Bellamy’s arm. “Well, then I’m sure Clarke won’t mind if you and Selene come with us.”

Clarke grinds her teeth, behind her smile. She’s sure that Gina is a perfectly nice woman, but she feels like she’s trying to lay a claim on Bellamy—which is fine, but totally unnecessary. “I don’t mind in the least.”

Bellamy glances at Clarke before turning back to Gina. “I mean, that sounds great, but Octavia is coming in today as well. She’ll be here in a few hours. I don’t want to abandon her.”

“Oh.” Gina deflates.

Clarke sighs. “I’m sure it’ll be fine, Bellamy. I can keep Octavia company.”

Bellamy glances at her again, brow furrowed. “Are you sure?” When she nods he shrugs. “Okay, sure. That sounds great.”

“Perfect!” Gina perks back up. “It starts at 7:00. I thought we could grab dinner before? So Alex and I can come and pick you up at about 5:30?”

“Sure. I’ll text you the address for the cabin.” Bellamy holds his hand out to Selene. “Come on, baby. We need to go get this tree set up so we can start decorating when Auntie O gets here.”

“Okay.” Selene hugs Alex again. “See you tonight!” She darts over to grab Bellamy’s hand.

Gina’s smile drops a bit when Bellamy turns to help Selene into the car. “Well, it was nice meeting you, Clarke.”

“You too.” Clarke shoots her and Alex a quick smile before climbing into the SUV. She raises an eyebrow at Bellamy when he climbs in. “I didn’t know you were seeing someone.”

“Who? Gina?” Bellamy laughs. “No. Alex and Selene are just really good friends so we hang out a lot. Plus Steve was best friends with her ex-husband so we knew them before. We’re just friends.”

Clarke laughs. “That might be true, but I promise you she thinks that tonight is a date.”

Bellamy double takes at her as he starts the car. “No. No, she doesn’t.”

Clarke shrugs, glancing out the window. “I know women, Bellamy. And that woman wants to date you.”

“I...uh…” Bellamy stutters before shaking his head. “I don’t think so. I think you’re wrong.”

“Okay.” Clarke shrugs again as Bellamy backs out of the spot, catching sight of Gina watching them. She knows that she’s right. Gina is very into Bellamy and Clarke can’t figure out why that bothers her so much. Yeah, he’s hot, but it’s not like she’s interested in him. Right? It doesn’t matter, it’s not like she’ll see him after this week anyway. And even if she’s into him that doesn’t have to mean anything. She’s just here to write a story about a traditional Christmas. No reason to get attached to Bellamy and his daughter.

* * *

“I’m here!” A voice rings out as the front door opens. “Where is my favorite niece?” 

“Auntie O!” Selene jumps up from the floor where she’d been playing with her dolls and takes off toward the door.

A moment later Selene leads in a petite brunette who is grinning, pulling a rolling suitcase behind her. “Big brother!” She points at Clarke. “Clarke, right? I feel like that’s right.”

Bellamy stands up and engulfs his sister in a hug while Clarke gets up a bit slower to make her way over to them. Once Bellamy pulls back Clarke extends her hand. “Clarke Griffin and you’re Octavia.”

Octavia looks at Clarke’s hand and laughs before pulling her in for a hug. “Look, if we’re going to be spending Christmas together, we hug in greeting.”

Clarke finds herself laughing along with the other woman as she pulls back. She’s going to like Octavia, she can tell already. And damn, if the Blakes weren’t struck with the beauty stick a couple of times. Octavia is just as hot as her brother, just in a smaller package.

“Bell, will you go grab the tubs of decorations while I run my bag up to my room?” Octavia glances at her watch. “We’ve only got two hours until your date-”

“It’s not a date,” Bellamy cuts in.

Octavia swings her head around to look at Clarke, lifting a perfectly shaped eyebrow. “Is it a date?”

“She sure thinks it is.” Clarke grins.

Octavia turns back to her brother. “As I was saying, we have about two hours until your date is picking you up so we need to get on this decorating so that you and Selene can be ready on time.”

Bellamy rolls his eyes at Octavia but doesn’t say another word as he spins and heads for the door. Octavia shakes her head as she smiles at Selene. “Will you show Auntie O where her room is?”

“Of course!” Selene grabs her hand, turning to Clarke. “We’ll be right back, Clarke.”

Clarke grins as she watches Selene pull Octavia up the stairs. She’s glad to see that Octavia is just as friendly as her brother—it’ll make tonight easier. She still can’t believe that she agreed to hang out with a complete stranger so that Bellamy could go on a date. What the hell is wrong with her? She sighs as Bellamy sets a few totes on the ground next to the Christmas tree.

“Is there more? Would you like some help?”

Bellamy turns to her and shoots her a smile. “Sure. You’ll save me from one last trip if you don’t mind.”

“Of course not.” Clarke follows him out of the cabin to a big bright red truck. “Holy crap, is this what Octavia drives?”

“Yeah. She enjoys standing out.” Bellamy laughs. “But also she works on a ranch so it comes in handy. Here.” He hands her a tote as he pulls the last two from the bed of the truck. 

Clarke follows him back into the house where they find Octavia and Selene already going through the totes. As Clarke sets her tote down she steps back for a minute, heading into the kitchen to grab a drink. But she also wants to watch the three of them interact—she’s a people watcher. She likes to see what a dynamic is from the outside before she throws herself in. She doesn’t know why—she’s been like this since she was a child.

She smiles to herself as she sees the siblings bickering back and forth before Octavia shoves Bellamy which causes him to go tumbling into one of the totes. This sends the three of them into a fit of giggles which just makes Clarke smile bigger. She’s so lucky that this is the family that she got double booked with. 

“Clarke? Are you going to come and help us?” Octavia calls out to her. “Or are you going to stand there and make us do all of the work?”

Clarke laughs. “I mean, I was tempted to let you guys do all of the work, but I  _ guess _ I can help.” She makes her way back over, opening the last remaining tote.

* * *

“So, Clarke. Now that I know how you ended up here, why don’t you tell me a little bit about yourself?” Octavia hands Clarke one of the wine glasses that she holds. 

Clarke takes it, shooting her a grateful smile. “Not much to tell. Ummm, I’m a writer for a travel magazine. So I travel a lot—which I’m used to. We had to move around a lot for my parents’ jobs while I was growing up.”

“So you’re writing a story about Sanctum?” 

Clarke laughs. “No, actually Sanctum was a bribe from my boss. I’m supposed to be on vacation so he told me that he’d rent me a cabin in Sanctum, paid for by the company if I would write him a last-minute piece on a traditional Christmas. And since I know nothing about a traditional Christmas it made sense to me. Too bad we got double booked.”

“Is it really too bad?” Octavia asks, eyeing Clarke over her glass.

“Honestly?” Clarke shakes her head. “No. Selene’s Christmas list is kind of perfect for my article. So it worked out well.”

Octavia watches her for a moment before shaking her head. “Not quite what I was talking about, but okay. I’ll let you get away with it this time.”

Clarke narrows her eyes at Octavia as she tries to figure out what the hell she’s talking about. Because Clarke honestly has no idea. She shrugs, deciding to let it go. “What about you? Bellamy told me that you work on a ranch?”

“Yeah, a family friend took me in when I turned 18. I need direction and a place to put my anger.” Octavia shrugs. “I know it’s hard to see it now, but I was a very angry teen. So Indra taught me how to help her run her ranch. Which is good because her daughter has zero interest in it.”

“I bet that’s hard work.” Clarke sips from her wine, eyes finding their way to the window. She’d been on a roll writing when Bellamy and Selene had left and hadn’t made it downstairs until a few minutes ago when she’d realized how late it was after her stomach had let out a loud growl.

Octavia had ordered in food and offered Clarke the leftovers. Clarke had apologized over and over. After all, she’d told Bellamy she would keep Octavia company and she’d spent the whole time working on her novel—the novel she hasn’t touched in years. It had felt good to work on it. She’d forgotten how much she loves writing fiction. 

Octavia laughs. “Alright, I’m not letting it go this time.”

“What?” Clarke jerks her eyes from the window to look at Octavia again. “What are you talking about?”

“You. Looking for my brother. You’re into him.”

“No.” Clarke shakes her head, eyes drifting to the window again. Shit. She looks back to Octavia. “Maybe? But that’s crazy. I’ve known him for like a day.”

Octavia sets her glass down on the table and leans toward Clarke. “It doesn’t matter when you meet the right person.”

“He’s out on a date right now.” Clarke sighs.

“Yeah, one he didn’t think was a date. He doesn’t see Gina that way. They’ve known each other for years.” Octavia shakes her head. “Gina is one of the nicest people I know, but her and Bell? That’s never going to happen.”

Clarke bites her lip. “How can you tell?”

“I know my brother.” Octavia turns her head. “Looks like they’re home.”

Clarke glances out the window and sure enough, Bellamy is helping Selene out of the car. The young girl makes a run for the house while Gina comes around to hug Bellamy. She’s not sure if she’s imagining it or not, but Bellamy looks a little uncomfortable. 

“Auntie O! Clarke!” Selene comes barreling into the room, grinning. “ _ The Nutcracker _ was amazing!”

Octavia drinks the little bit of wine she has left before climbing off her stool. “That’s awesome. Why don’t we get you ready for bed?”

“Are you going to read me a story?”

“Of course, munchkin, who do you think you’re talking to.” Octavia shoots Clarke a smile. “I’ll be back down in a bit.”

Selene runs over and hugs Clarke. “Night Clarke!”

“Good night, Selene.” Clarke smiles as she watches the pair head up the stairs, turning when Bellamy clears her throat. “So?”

“She thought it was a date.” Bellamy frowns.

Clarke laughs, throwing her head back. “I told you!”

“Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I get it. I’m an idiot.” Bellamy smiles. “Did you and O have a good night?”

Clarke winces. “Don’t hate me. I actually got lost in writing and lost track of the time. I haven’t been down here that long.”

“That’s fine.” Bellamy shrugs. “Octavia is a big girl. Did you eat?”

Clarke rolls her eyes. “Yes,  _ Dad _ .”

Bellamy laughs. “Sorry, it’s a habit. Were you working on your story?”

“No, actually. I was working on a novel that I haven’t touched in about two years, but I suddenly had inspiration so I started writing and lost track of time.” Clarke takes another sip of her wine.

“That’s amazing. What’s it about?” Bellamy asks as he sits on the stool that Octavia had just vacated.

“Oh, come on. You don’t want to hear about it.” Clarke tilts her head, eyes narrowing.

Bellamy nods. “I wouldn’t be asking if I didn’t want to hear about it.”

Clarke considers him for another moment before nodding. “Okay, you asked for it. Well, it starts on a dark and stormy night….”

* * *

**December 20**

Sunday starts early as every day seems to with the Blakes. It’s a busy day as they try and fit as much of Selene’s list in as they can, including Clarke in everything. Right after breakfast, they decide to go sledding—something that Clarke has never done before. All three of the Blakes laugh their asses off when she flies off her sled on more than one occasion, but Clarke has never had more fun in her entire life. 

After sledding, and changing into dry clothes because Clarke is freezing, they move onto decorating the rest of the living room. Garlands are hung. Stockings are hung—even one for Clarke that Selene had made for her from the extras that they had. A wreath on the front door and Christmas lights line the entire room. They sing Christmas carols the whole time.

After dinner, they move onto baking cookies—although, for the life of her, Clarke can’t figure out why they decided to do that particular activity last. That is until they finish mixing the dough and she realizes that all four of them are covered in flour. As Bellamy slides the first batch of cookies into the oven they send Selene to the shower. Then while the second batch is cooking it’s Octavia’s turn. Clarke’s turning the third and Bellamy’s during the last batch. 

“Can I have a cookie now, Daddy? They’re cooled off.” Selene is waiting at the bottom of the stairs for Bellamy as he walks down, hair still wet. 

“They’re not even decorated yet.” Bellamy frowns. “Don’t you want to eat them when they’re decorated?”

Selene pouts. “But we’re not decorating them until tomorrow. Can I have just one tonight?”

Bellamy walks into the kitchen, Selene trailing behind her. “I guess one won’t hurt anything, but after that, it’s off to bed without you.” Selene continues to pout for another moment before nodding, taking the offered cookie.

“I need to work on my article so I’m going to head up to the office if that’s okay?” Clarke smiles as she stands.

Octavia frowns at her. “Of course it is. You don’t need our permission to work. Be gone with you.” She waves her hand in Clarke’s direction.

“Gee, thanks.” Clarke shakes her head as she heads for the stairs. “Good night, Selene,”

“Night Clarke!” 

Clarke makes her way up the stairs to the attic office, lost in thought. She hadn’t expected to have so much fun on this trip—even after she’d met the Blakes. She also had not expected to become so attached to Bellamy and Selene. Today had not helped her attraction to Bellamy—in fact, she’s pretty sure it’s gotten worse. He hasn’t mentioned Gina since he got home from seeing  _ The Nutcracker _ and she feels like maybe he’s been flirting with her. But she just can’t be sure. Feelings suck.

* * *

**December 21**

The next morning Clarke is woken by the sound of giggles. She sits up slowly on the couch, blinking her eyes. The Blakes are spread around the kitchen table decorating cookies. “Couldn’t even wait for me to get up?” she calls.

Bellamy turns around, smiling. “We thought we’d let you sleep in as much as you could. When I went to bed at midnight, you were still upstairs writing so I figured you were up late.”

“I was, but I’m used to operating on little to no sleep.” Clarke shrugs as she stands up, yawning. She makes a beeline for the coffee pot. “I’m just going to get some coffee and then I’ll be there to help.”

It takes them a good part of the morning to get all of the cookies decorated. Clarke has done a lot less than anyone else, but her cookies look amazing if she does say so herself. 

“Wow, Clarke!” Selene looks at her with wide eyes. “Yours are so much better than ours. How are they so good?”

Bellamy walks around the table to take a closer look. “Apparently, we should have let you decorate all of the cookies. These look like they were done professionally.”

Clarke shrugs, face flushing. “I told you I was into art. That extends to anything creative like this.”

“Damn, girl. I wish mine looked half as good as yours.” Octavia shakes her head before glancing at the clock on the wall. “Okay, munchkin. We’re going to need to get going if we want to get our Christmas shopping done in time for the gingerbread house building contest.” She pauses to turn to Clarke. “Did you get enough written last night that you can come with us?”

Clarke shoots her a smile. “Absolutely. I wanted to check out some more of the shops anyway. And hit up the art store again. They have some great stuff there.” She turns to Bellamy. “You coming too?”

“Oh no.” Bellamy shakes his head. “O takes Selene shopping every Christmas for my gifts so I’m not allowed.”

“Makes sense.” Clarke drinks down the rest of her coffee, annoyed at herself by her disappointment. It’s not like she hasn’t been around him practically non-stop since they met. What the hell is her problem? “I just need to take a shower and get dressed. Give me twenty?”

Octavia nods. “Sounds good.”

Clarke grabs her bathroom bag and a change of clothes from her suitcase before heading upstairs to the bathroom. Maybe some time away from Bellamy will help with this crush she can’t seem to shake. Or maybe she’ll be able to convince herself to get the balls to do something about it. Who the hell knows.

* * *

“I can’t believe Octavia ditched us to join his team and then took my daughter with her.” Bellamy rolls his eyes as he turns to look at Clarke who is currently putting the finishing touches on their gingerbread house.

Clarke raises an eyebrow as she looks at him. “Have you seen Lincoln? He’s hot and he’s nice on top of that. Of course, she ditched her big brother to go hang out with him. And your child doesn’t get to see her aunt often so she wants to be with her. Are you seriously pouting over this?”

Bellamy narrows his eyes as she watches her. He can’t quite get a handle on Clarke—which is driving him a little bit mad. She’s gorgeous, there’s no question about that and he is anything but blind. She’s good with Selene and she has a great sense of humor. He thought that she’d been jealous when he’d admitted that Gina had thought their outing had been a date—which is not at all how he sees Gina. He’s been flirting with Clarke but trying not to be too blatant about it seeing as his daughter is always around. But he still can’t tell if she’s interested. And now she’s talking about the artist that Octavia met being hot. He’s definitely jealous. 

“I’m not pouting,” he settles on. “Are you sure you don’t want me to help with something?”

“No.” Clarke laughs, shaking her head. “I’ve seen how well you decorate cookies and I’m not letting you ruin my masterpiece.”

Bellamy laughs along with her because she’s probably right—he would probably mess it up. He reaches over to push a piece of hair that has fallen into her face behind her ear. She freezes for a moment and Bellamy quickly pulls his hand back, sure that he just fucked up royally.

“Thank you.” Clarke looks up at him from beneath her eyelashes and if he’s not mistaken, she’s blushing. 

  
“Of course.” Bellamy grins. “Can’t have your hair getting in the way and ruining your masterpiece after all.”

They fall into a comfortable silence, broken only by Clarke asking for Bellamy to hand her things. It works for him because it lets him watch her without worrying about being caught. He hadn’t been excited to realize that they’d been double-booked in the cabin. In fact, he’d been pretty pissed. Then Clarke’s car had broken down and he knew he had to offer to let her stay with them. He hadn’t wanted to because he didn’t need Selene getting attached to a random stranger, but he’s the one that seems to be getting attached. 

Then the whole date thing with Gina. Ugh, he doesn’t know how he missed that one. He never would’ve thought that Gina would be interested in dating him—they’d known each other’s husbands. It’s weird to him. And it’s not like he doesn’t like Gina—they wouldn’t be friends if he didn’t. And she’s gorgeous. Bellamy’s eyes scan the room until they land on Gina and Alex. She looks up and smiles. He waves before quickly turning back to Clarke. He just hasn’t figured out how to tell her that he’s not interested in her. But he’s going to need to get on that soon. 

And he needs to figure out what to do about Clarke. He’s a little afraid to do anything beyond flirting because she’s staying with them. That could put her in an uncomfortable position since she’s staying with them. But also, he doesn’t want her to think that he’s not interested. Why is he overthinking this?

But even as he asks himself the question, he knows. Steve is the reason that he’s overthinking it. He’s afraid to get hurt again. It still hurts to think about him. He also knows that Steve would want him to be happy again—and he’d approve of Clarke and the way that she makes Bellamy feel. He nods to himself. He’s going to go for it. 

“Wow! Your gingerbread house is even better than Auntie O and Lincoln’s,” Selene says as she steps up beside Bellamy.

Bellamy laughs. “That’s because Clarke wouldn’t let me touch it.”

“Hey! I let you hand me stuff so you contributed.” Clarke laughs. 

Selene stays with them for the last few minutes, helping Bellamy hand things to Clarke. And it doesn’t surprise Bellamy in the least when they get first place. Selene poses with Bellamy and Clarke, all three with huge smiles on their face, holding the first place ribbon. Lincoln and Octavia’s gingerbread house comes in second, much to Octavia’s chagrin. Bellamy figures that Lincoln let Octavia help more than he should have because most of it looks amazing—and some of it not so much. 

Bellamy, Clarke, and Selene head back to the cabin after making plans with Gina and Alex to go ice skating the next day. Octavia decides to stay in town for a bit longer with Lincoln—which Bellamy barely manages to hold his tongue about but he does. As soon as they make it back to the cabin he sends Selene straight to bed. She’s been staying up way too late while they’ve been on vacation. 

He makes his way downstairs, frowning when he can’t find Clarke. He knows that she’s not in the attic working because she would have had to walk past Selene’s room. The lights are off and she’s not on the couch so where the hell is she? Bellamy notices movement out the back door and heads over, opening it slowly. 

Clarke is leaning against the railing, a steaming mug in her hand as she stares up at the stars. “You can’t see the stars like this in Arkadia,” she says softly without turning around.

“No, you can’t.” Bellamy steps onto the porch, shutting the door behind him. He moves over to lean against the railing but chooses to watch her instead of the stars. 

Neither of them moves or speaks, just enjoying the silence. Once again Bellamy is grateful for the time just to observe Clarke. Until she turns her head, meeting his eyes. “What?” she asks.

“Huh?” Bellamy raises his eyebrows, trying to play off the fact that she has just caught him staring.

“Do I have something on my face?” Clarke wipes at her face.

Bellamy laughs. “No.” 

“Then why are you staring?” Clarke rolls her eyes.

“Have you ever thought that maybe I just like looking at you?”

Clarke ducks her head and Bellamy is sure that if there was more light out here he’d see that she is blushing. “No, I guess that never crossed my mind.”

“I don’t want to beat around the bush, but I also don’t want to make you uncomfortable,” Bellamy says as he steps closer, hand coming up to cup her cheek. “But I’d really like to kiss you.”

A small smile makes its way onto Clarke’s lips. “I think I’d like that.”

“Good.” Bellamy returns her smile before leaning down to brush his lips across hers. He pulls back slightly, but then she’s leaning forward and her free hand makes its way to his neck to pull him back to her. 

The second kiss is more intense. Clarke opens her mouth for him, letting out a low moan as their tongues slid against one another. Bellamy’s stomach drops as he pulls her closer. He hears something hit the porch as her hands link around his neck. He wonders for a moment what it is before he loses himself in the kiss. He presses her back to the railing before he lifts her so that she sits on the railing, her legs going around his waist.

Bellamy pulls away to run a trail of kisses down her neck, sucking lightly at her pulse point as her hands thread through his hair. Her nails scratch lightly against his scalp as he makes his way back to her lips. He knows that this is a terrible place to make out—it’s cold as shit out here, but he doesn’t want to break apart long enough to bring it inside. 

He’d also meant to say more than he wanted to kiss her. He’d meant to tell her that he likes her, but at that moment all he could think about was kissing her. And he is enjoying the kissing. He can’t remember the last time he’d just made out with someone—especially not this desperately. He grinds into Clarke slightly as her hips buck. Their hands are everywhere as their mouths meet again and again. Another downside to being outside is that he can’t get his hands on her. But later, there’s always later. 

“Daddy?” Selene’s voice pulls him from his thoughts and away from Clarke. “Daddy, where are you?”

Both Bellamy and Clarke are breathing hard as he leans his forehead against hers. “I’m sorry, I have to-”

“Go.” Clarke gives him a soft smile as he lifts her down and sets her on her feet. “Take care of Selene, I’ll come in a little while.”

Bellamy looks at her for another moment. He wants to keep kissing her, but Selene is always his first priority. He watches as Clarke bites her lip and damn if he doesn’t want to kiss her again. “Okay. I better go.” But he doesn’t move right away. 

The light turning on downstairs causing Bellamy to jerk away from Clarke. “I’m coming, baby,” he calls, but his eyes are still on Clarke. He shakes his head, sending Clarke a quick grin before heading to the door. He opens it and steps inside, turning to call over his shoulder, “Don’t stay out here too long. Wouldn’t want you to turn into an icicle.”

Clarke’s laughter follows him into the cabin, making him smile until his eyes land on Selene and then all thoughts of Clarke are long gone as he sees the tears on her face. He immediately goes into dad mode, sweeping up Selene into his arms.

* * *

**December 23**

Clarke types out the last sentence, letting out a sigh of relief. Her article is done and with a few hours to spare. She knows she should proof it, but she just doesn’t have it in her. She sends it to Roan in an email letting him know she didn’t read over it—it’s what he gets for giving her an assignment on her vacation. 

She closes her laptop as she glances out the window, smiling to herself. Bellamy, Selene, Octavia, and Lincoln are having a snowfall fight. Octavia and Lincoln have been inseparable since they met which Clarke knows is driving Bellamy crazy. Personally, she really liked Lincoln and she can see what Octavia sees in him. Lincoln is a little quiet, stoic, and an amazing artist. And even though Octavia is a grown-ass woman Bellamy does not seem to approve of her and Lincoln—which is ridiculous. It’s obvious that they’re perfect for each other.

Clarke sighs. She and Bellamy haven’t been able to get a moment alone since their kiss the other night. Selene or Octavia has always been around. The last two days have been filled with building snowmen, sledding, shopping, and ice skating. Which Bellamy was nice enough to teach her how to do after she spent ten minutes flat on her ass. And she had not been complaining about getting to hold his hand. Today she’d had to bail out of the day’s activities so she could get her article written and it’s a damn good one if she does say so herself.

She glances at the time and curses. They’re going to have to leave for the bonfire in a little while and she still needs to shower. Maybe, she and Bellamy can get a chance to talk tonight. One can hope. Obviously, the kiss means he’s attracted to her, but she doesn’t know if it means more than that to him. She swallows deeply, closing her eyes. She knows why she’s so nervous. It’s because she’s come to realize that she’s pretty sure that she’s in love with Bellamy.

Which is ridiculous—she knows that. Clarke’s only known him for less than a week, but being around him is as natural as breathing. She loves Selene and she loves Octavia. She feels like she was meant to be a part of their family. Now it just comes down to having a conversation with Bellamy to make sure that he’s on the same page. She really hopes he is because otherwise, this will be an awkward next few days. 

Clarke laughs to herself as she makes her way downstairs to grab her stuff so she can shower and get ready. Just as she gathers everything the back door flies open and the Blake clan plus Lincoln come flying through the door.

“Clarke!” Selene grins. “Are you all done with work?”

“I am. I’m going to go take a shower so that I’ll be ready for the bonfire.” Clarke holds up her stuff as proof before her eyes slide to Bellamy to see that he’s already watching her. She feels herself flush when she sees the hunger in her eyes. They  _ really _ have to have that conversation tonight. She’s not sure that she can go much longer without having it.

“Well, hurry up and get ready then.” Octavia moves forward to start herding her up the stairs. “We’re going to grab dinner beforehand. Lincoln says there’s this little restaurant that we have to have.”

Clarke laughs. “I’m going. I’m going.” She hurries up the stairs, grinning to herself. Tonight is going to be great. 

* * *

Bellamy sits beside the fire, eyes wandering over to Clarke who is talking with Haper. He’s been trying to find time to talk to her for the last few days, but it’s been hard to get her alone. He’s hoping that he’ll be able to get her alone tonight. His eyes slide over to where Selene and Alex are roasting marshmallows over under fire under Gina’s watchful eye.

“Hey, big brother.” Octavia drops down next to him. “What are you doing?”

Bellamy glances over at her. “Finally ditch Lincoln?”

“No,” Octavia scoffs. “I most definitely didn’t ditch him. He’s talking to Jasper about something. Jasper got really enthusiastic so I bounced the hell out of that conversation. But that doesn’t answer my question.”

Bellamy glances back up to find that Clarke is no longer talking to Harper. He frowns. Damn it, where did she go. He sighs, eyes falling back to Selene.

“So what’s going on with you and Gina?”

“Nothing.” Bellamy turns his head to look at Octavia. “There’s nothing between us. I’ve been trying to figure out how to tell her without hurting her. It’s not like I want to hurt her. She’s beautiful and she’s sweet, but it’s just not there, you know?”

“Of course I know.” Octavia sends him a sly smile. “Could that be because you have your eyes on someone else?”

Bellamy laughs. “I’m surprised it took you this long to ask about it. You’re generally nosier than this.”

Octavia’s eyes light up as she laughs. “I wasn’t sure if you were aware of how you feel or not. Figured I’d give you time to figure it out.”

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure I’ve known for a while.” Bellamy shakes his head. “We kissed the other night.”

“What?” Octavia slaps his arm. “And you’re just now telling me?”

Bellamy holds up his hands in surrender. “You’re my little sister, O, not my best friend. It’s not actually all that normal that you expect me to tell you when I kiss a girl.”

“Of course you should tell me! I told you that I kissed Lincoln!” Octavia rolls her eyes. “So we’re closer than most siblings. There’s nothing wrong with that.” She pauses. “Why haven’t you told Clarke how you feel?”

“First of all, I did not want you to tell me that you kissed Lincoln. I don’t need to know that shit.” He shakes his head. “And I haven’t been able to find the time to talk to Clarke. I’m hoping that I can tonight. I just hope that she feels the same.” 

Octavia scoffs. “Of course she feels the same. Moron. Anyone with two eyes can see that she’s into you.”

“Really?” Bellamy ducks his head, grin sliding across his face.

“Yes, Bell. Now, what the hell are you waiting for, Bell? Go find her.” Octavia stands, pulling him to his feet. “Go. Now.”

Bellamy laughs. “I’m going.” He makes his way over to Harper, hoping that she can tell him where Clarke went. “Hey, Harper.”

“Bellamy.” Harper smiles at him. “What can I do for you?”

“I saw Clarke talking to you a few minutes ago. I was hoping that you knew where she went.”

Harper frowns. “She said she was going to find you.” She glances over his shoulder. “Looks like Monty’s ready to go.” She lays a hand on his arm. “I’m sure she’s around somewhere. I’ll see you later, okay?”

“Yeah. Have a good night.” Bellamy watches her walk away for a moment before scanning the crowd. Where the hell had Clarke gone? He sighs as he starts making his way around. She has to be here somewhere. He’ll find her eventually.

* * *

_ “Nothing.” Bellamy turns his head to look at Octavia. “There’s nothing between us. I’ve been trying to figure out how to tell her without hurting her. It’s not like I want to hurt her. She’s beautiful and she’s sweet, but it’s just not there, you know?” _

_ “Of course I know.”  _

Tears fill Clarke’s eyes. She can’t listen anymore. How could she have been so wrong? She staggers away. She hadn’t meant to overhear their conversation, but after she’d talked to Harper she’d realized that she had to bite the bullet and talk to Bellamy. She’d made a quick stop at the bathroom before heading over and now she’s glad that she didn’t have that conversation with him. 

God, she is an idiot to think that he was interested in something more than sex. Because it was obvious that he found her attracted and desired her. She can’t believe that she talked herself into thinking that there was a chance for them. Of course, there’s not. He’ll end up with someone like Gina. How could she be so stupid? It’s the most predominant thought in her head.

She needs to get the hell out of here. She can’t face him or Octavia, not having heard what she heard. But she’d ridden here with Bellamy. Damn it. She swipes at her face, trying to wipe away the tears that keep falling. She doesn’t want anyone to see her like this—to ask what’s wrong.

“Clarke, are you okay?” Monty is suddenly at her side, hand on her elbow.

Clarke wipes at her face. “I need to leave. I’m not feeling well.”

Monty frowns at her, opening his mouth as if to speak before shaking his head. “Of course. Harper and I wanted to leave early anyway.” He pulls keys from his pocket. “Why don’t you head to the car? It’s a blue Honda. Just press the key fob and you’ll find it. I’ll grab Harper and then we’ll meet you there, okay?”

“Thank you, Monty.” She accepts the keys before stumbling toward the clearing that is being used for parking. She presses the key fob following the lights and beeps. She unlocks the car and climbs inside. She puts on her seatbelt, pulling her knees to her chest as she looks out the window. 

When Monty and Harper make it to the car she hands Monty the keys wordlessly before going back to staring out the window. They’re silent as they drive away, but Clarke can feel the tension. They want to ask what’s wrong, but they’re too nice and she’s never been more grateful. She doesn’t want to talk about it—she can’t talk about it. It’s too much. She feels so dumb. 

“Thank you,” she says as she climbs out of the car once they’ve reached the cabin. She waves once she’s at the door, trying to force a smile that she’s sure is more of a grimace before heading inside. She doesn’t know how much longer they’ll be gone, but she has zero desire to speak to anyone once they’re home so she heads to the bathroom to clean up and change into her pajamas.

Clarke climbs onto the couch, lying down and staring into the flames. She wills herself to sleep but knows that it’s going to be a long sleepless night as she tries to turn her mind off. She doesn’t know how long she lays there before she hears the front door open, but she immediately snaps her eyes shut and wills herself to relax. 

She hears someone walk into the living room and she can tell that it’s Bellamy. He walks over and she assumes that he’s looking down at her as he looms over her. Her eyes open slowly as she hears him walk away, a single tear sliding down her cheek. She can’t do this. She can’t stay here.

* * *

**December 24**

“Happy Christmas Eve,” Bellamy calls as he makes his way down the stairs. He’s slept in later than he meant to which sucks because now the chance of him getting to talk to Clarke anytime soon is slim to none. He’d looked for her for almost an hour before Jasper had informed him that she’d left with Monty and Harper. He still doesn’t know why she left early since she was already asleep when they got home. 

Maybe he can convince Octavia to take Selene for a little while so that he and Clarke can talk. It shouldn’t take too much convincing he doesn’t think.

“Daddy?” Selene meets him at the bottom of the stairs, tears in her eyes. 

“What’s wrong, baby?” Bellamy picks her up, Selene immediately wrapping her arms around his neck.

Octavia appears next to him. “She’s upset. Apparently, Clarke is going home.”

“What?” Bellamy continues to hug Selene as he glances down at Octavia. When his sister shrugs he heads into the living room to find Clarke packing up her bags. “What’s going on Clarke?”

Clarke doesn’t look up from packing. “Well, my article is done and my car is fixed so I figured I’d head home. Let you guys have a family Christmas.”

Selene sniffs as she leans away from Bellamy’s shoulder. “But Clarke, you’re supposed to spend Christmas with us.” She wiggles in his arms until he sets her on the ground. She walks over to blink up at Clarke. 

“I’m sorry, Selene.” Clarke finally stops what she is doing to kneel down in front of her. “I was never supposed to stay this long. Thank you for sharing your list with me. It helped me write a great article. But I need to go home and let you guys have Christmas together.”

Selene throws her arms around Clarke, hugging her tightly. “I want you to stay for Christmas.”

“I’m sorry. I am, but I really do need to get home.” Clarke returns the hug before pulling back, wiping the tears from Selene’s face. “But thank you for being my friend Selene.” She gives her a small smile before standing up and going back to her packing. 

Selene stares at Clarke for a moment before walking back over to Bellamy, wrapping her arm around his leg. Bellamy glances down at her for a moment before looking back to Clarke. He doesn’t understand what the hell is going on. Why does Clarke suddenly want to go home? She’s already told them that her mom is overseas so it’s not like she has someone to rush back to. And what changed between yesterday and today? Had something happened to her friend?

“Selene, why don’t you grab your jacket and we’ll go play outside?” Octavia asks softly, coming over and taking his daughter’s hand.

Bellamy mouths a silent thank you to his sister, waiting until she and Selene make it outside before turning back to Clarke. “What’s going on, Clarke?”

Clarke’s shoulders stiffen as she freezes for just a moment before closing her suitcase. “Like I said, I’m heading home.”

“Seriously? So you used us to write your damn traditional Christmas article and then you’re just leaving without actually staying for Christmas?” Anger laces Bellamy’s words. He’s hurt and he’s confused. He’d woken up hoping that today was the day that he and Clarke would talk and now she’s just fucking leaving? It doesn’t make any sense.

“I was never supposed to stay this long.” Clarke takes a deep breath before turning to face him. “I never should’ve stayed this long. Thank you for letting me stay and letting me come along for your activities, but there’s nothing left for me here. So I’m going home.”

“There’s nothing left-” Bellamy breaks off, biting down on his tongue to keep from blowing up at her. “Okay. Great. Drive safe.” He spins on his heel, heading for the stairs. He needs to get away from her before he loses it on her. 

He’s so fucking pissed. He’s an idiot. How could he ever think that she was ready to settle down? Her girlfriend had broken up with her because she was never home. That isn’t what he wants for him and Selene. He can’t believe he let himself get lost in the idea that they could be something. Well, at least he figured it out before they tried. Yes, Selene is hurting but not nearly as bad as she would a few months from now.

Bellamy winces when he hears the front door open and then slam shut. Fuck. 

* * *

Clarke drives until lunchtime before she decides to stop. She’s hungry and honestly just needs a break from the driving. It hasn’t been a great drive since she’s been overthinking the whole time. She stops at some small-town diner and orders their special. She doesn’t even know what the hell it is, she just doesn’t want to think about what to order. 

She’s spent the first hour of the drive in tears. She’s lucky she made it out of the cabin before bursting into tears. Selene had been so heartbroken and all Clarke wanted to do was agree to stay, but she knew that she couldn’t do that to herself. And Bellamy? He’d been so angry—which she couldn’t understand. If he didn’t see anything between them then why did he care if she left? She was just making it easy on all of them by leaving now.

Clarke sighs as she pulls out her phone. She has a text from Octavia.

_ Hey, what’s up? Why’d you leave like that? _

Clarke considers it for a few minutes before shaking her head and shooting off a reply.

_ I just need to get back home. I hope you guys have a great rest of your trip. Hit me up the next time you’re in Arkadia. _

She goes to set her phone back down, but it starts ringing. It’s Roan. Great. 

“Hey, Roan. What’s up?”

“Just checking in with you. I wanted to let you know that the article was amazing. Some of the best that you’ve written in a long time.” He pauses. “It sounds noisy. Am I catching you at a bad time?”

Clarke laughs bitterly. “No. I’m on my way home. Stopped to get some food.”

“I’m sorry, did you just say that you’re on your way home?” Roan asks.

“Yup, that’s what I said.” Clarke shoots the waitress a grateful smile as she sets her plate in front of her. 

There’s a sound of Roan covering the phone before she can hear him somewhat muffled. “Raven, pick up the other phone, please. I think something’s wrong with Clarke.” There’s some more noise before he continues, clearer now, “So Raven’s getting on. Hold on a sec.”

Clarke rolls her eyes. At least she won’t have to explain herself twice. Seeing as she doesn’t even want to explain it once. She waits until she hears Raven pick up. “Hey, Raven.”

“Hey, Clarke. What’s going on?”

Clarke sighs. “I’m on my way home. My assignment is done and I didn’t feel the need to continue sponging off the Blakes.”

“But-” Roan starts to speak, but Raven cuts him off.

“I thought you and Daddy Blake were a thing?”

Clarke laughs. “Daddy Blake? Really? Look, I thought so too, but he apparently did not.”

“Seriously?” Roan sounds annoyed. “Do I need to go up there and beat the crap out of him?”

“No, Roan.” Clarke scoffs. “He didn’t do anything wrong. I overheard him and his sister talking about how there was nothing between us and he didn’t know how to tell me without hurting me. So I took matters into my own hands and left.”

“And how did he take that, Clarke?” Raven asks and there’s something about her tone that Clarke can’t put her finger on—but it sounds off.

Clarke sighs, head dropping. “He was mad.”

“Does that really sound like someone who thinks there’s nothing between the two of you?” Raven asks.

“Well...uh….” Clarke stutters.

Roan sighs. “You’re an idiot Clarke Griffin. Didn’t you say that there was another woman there that was trying to date him? How do you know he wasn’t talking about her?”

“Well...I mean…” Fuck. Clarke isn’t sure. Why had she left like that? She knows why. She was hurt. But damn it, what if he hadn’t been talking about her. She’s an idiot. “Fuck.”

“Yeah, fuck.” Clarke can imagine Roan shaking his head at her. “You need to turn around.”

“Exactly,” Raven cut in. “You need to go back and hear the words from his mouth. And quickly. There’s a storm that’s supposed to be coming through there tonight.”

Clarke knows that they’re right—she should’ve given Bellamy a chance to explain before she left. So what is she supposed to do now? Just turn around and head back with her tail between her legs. That sounds like a terrible idea. But on the other hand, what if he was talking about Gina and not her? 

“Clarke? Please tell me that you’re in your car and driving back now?” Roan asks.

Clarke digs into her purse and pulls out some cash, throwing it on the table. “I’m going now.”

“Call us to let us know you made it safe,” Raven says. “We love you!”

“Love you, too.” Clarke hangs up the phone and rushes back to her car. She won’t be able to make it back before dark, but it shouldn’t be too dark if she hurries. And assuming that the storm holds off long enough. She is such an idiot. 

* * *

Bellamy sits on the couch, staring into the fire. He’s brooding and he’s aware of it, but he can’t seem to make himself stop. He can’t believe that Clarke had just left like that. He was so pissed when she left that he hadn’t thought to make her explain herself. Not that she should have to explain herself, but he just doesn’t understand and that’s what is driving him crazy. Octavia had told him she’d texted Clarke and she’d been vague in her reply.

“Daddy? Do you want to come play with us?” Selene sits down next to him.

Bellamy forces a smile, shaking his head. “No, thank you. If you don’t mind I’d like to just sit here and relax.”

“You don’t look very relaxed,” Selene says as she looks up at him before pointing to the crease between his eyebrows. “You look mad.”

“I’m not, baby girl. I promise.” He leans over and kisses the top of her head. “Go play with Auntie O. I’ll play the next game with you, okay?”

“Okay, Daddy.” Selene leans over and kisses his cheek before skipping over to the table where she and Octavia are playing Monopoly. 

Bellamy goes back to glaring at the fire, jumping when his phone starts ringing. He doesn’t know who would be calling him. He pulls out his phone and almost ignores the call because he doesn’t know the number. The only reason he doesn’t is that it’s a Polis number so he figures no one would be calling him unless it’s an emergency. “Hello?”

“Bellamy? It’s Jasper Jordan.”

“Hey, Jasper, what’s up?” Bellamy is even more confused now. He doesn’t know why Jasper would be calling him.

“Hey, I’m sorry to bother you on Christmas Eve, but I just got a phone call from Roan King.” Bellamy frowns. The name sounds familiar, but he doesn’t know why Jasper would be calling him about it. “Roan is Clarke’s boss...friend….whatever. He was on the phone with her and he said it sounded like she got into an accident and then the signal was dropped. He was worried so he called me. I already called Sheriff Miller who is out looking. I’m about to head out and so is Monty and Harper. I thought you might want to help.”

Bellamy jumps off of the couch, worried and confused. “But Clarke left this morning. Why would he think she was up here?”

“He said she was on her way back. I don’t know, man. I just know that the storm is getting worse and I don’t want her to be out there hurt and alone.”

“Of course!” Bellamy shakes his head, already pulling on his boots. “I’m heading out now.” He hangs up the phone as he pulls on his jacket.

“Bellamy? What’s going on?” Octavia frowns at him.

Bellamy grabs his keys from the kitchen counter, stopping to drop a kiss on Selene’s head. “That was Jasper. He said that Clarke was in an accident. Apparently, she was on her way back into town and she was on the phone with her boss. The line got dropped and he can’t get ahold of her. So I’m going to go out and help them look for her.”

“Of course.” Octavia jumps out of her chair and walks over to squeeze his arm. “I’m sure she’s fine, but don’t worry about me and Selene. I’ve got her.”

“Find her Daddy and bring her home, okay?” Selene looks up at him, blinking her big blue eyes. 

“I will, baby. I will.” And then he’s out the door, trying to push down on his panic. What if she’s hurt? As he climbs into his SUV he curses the snow that is falling faster and faster. The storm is really picking up. He’s going to have to drive slowly, but he also has to find her. She has to be okay so that he can yell at her for leaving—for giving up on them before they’d even started. Yell at her for driving when there’s a fucking snowstorm and getting in an accident. Yell at her and tell her that he loves her—because he does. She has to be okay. He doesn’t think he can go through this again.

* * *

Clarke burrows deeper into her jacket, rubbing her gloved hands together before blowing on them. She can’t believe she lost control of her car—her beautiful car. She’d smashed into a tree after hitting a patch of ice. It’s not like she’d even been driving that fast because it was snowing too badly. Luckily she isn’t hurt, unlike her poor car. It won’t even start which is why she’s sitting inside of it trying to stay warm. She knows that there is no way she can stay the night out here in her car, but she doesn’t think trying to walk back to town is going to be any better. 

She’d been on the phone with Roan when she’d lost control, but somewhere along the way she’d lost signal. All she can do now is hope that Roan can call help for her because otherwise she’s screwed. She sighs. She’ll give it another hour before she starts trying to hoof it to town. Maybe by then, the storm will have slowed and she won’t die on the side of the road.

She glances up as headlights flash in her windshield. Oh thank God, someone is here. She won’t die in her car. She shakes her head, knowing that she’s being overdramatic. But honestly, with the way her last few days have gone, she feels like she has the right to be. She squints her eyes as the SUV pulls up near her car and the driver gets out. Is that? There’s no way. But it is.

Bellamy knocks on her window. “Are you okay?”

Clarke stares at him for a moment, just blinking. She doesn’t think this is a dream, but honestly? She’s not sure. 

“Clarke?” Bellamy looks worried as he opens her door, taking her face in his hands. “Are you okay? Did you hit your head?”

Clarke’s hands go up to rest atop his. “You’re really here.”

Bellamy laughs. “Yeah, I’m really here. Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

“No.” Clarke shakes her head. 

“Good. Pop your trunk, I’ll grab your suitcase. Grab anything you need from your car and I’ll meet you at the SUV, okay? I left it running, it’s warm in there.” Bellamy shakes his head. “I bet you’re freezing.” Then he’s reaching down to pop the trunk himself and running around to grab her bag.

Clarke blinks, but then quickly grabs her stuff from the car before locking up and running to Bellamy’s SUV. She slides inside with a sigh of relief as the heat washes over her. She’d known that she was cold, but until she got into the heat she hadn’t realized just how cold she was. She shivers as she reaches over to turn the heater up to full blast and then places her hands in front of the vents.

Bellamy opens the back of the SUV to throw her bag in before hurrying around and jumping into the driver’s seat, twisting to face her. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

Clarke nods without looking at him. “Yeah. I banged my head on the steering wheel, but I didn’t pass out or anything. I’ve got a bit of a headache, but nothing too bad. I took some Ibuprophen so it feels better.”

Bellamy’s hands are on her face again, turning her to face him and suddenly he’s in her face looking at her head. “Looks like you’ve got a bit of a bump, but it’s nothing too bad.” He stops suddenly when he looks down as if realizing how close he is. “I...uhhh…”

Clarke lips her lips, blinking up at him for a moment before her eyes drop to his lips. “Fuck it,” she mutters before leaning forward to kiss him. 

Bellamy pulls away and Clarke cringes, pulling away from him and curling up into her seat. Why is she so fucking stupid? She heard what he said and yet she let Raven and Roan convince her that she’d heard wrong, but his reaction tells her that she hadn’t. She wrecked her car for nothing. “Idiot,” she mutters.

“Why did you do that?” Bellamy asks slowly.

Clarke bites down on her lip to keep herself from crying. She doesn’t look at him when she replies, “Why do you think?”

“I don’t understand. You left this morning, but now you’re back and kissing me. I thought you leaving meant that you weren’t interested.” Bellamy speaks quietly, but his confusion is apparent.

“Me? Not interested?” Clarke huffs. “No, that would be you.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Bellamy asks, grabbing her arm when she doesn’t answer. “Clarke, what the hell are you talking about?”

Clarke rolls her eyes before turning to face him. She knows that he can see the tears in her eyes, but she doesn’t care. “I heard you at the bonfire. You told Octavia that there wasn’t anything between us. So I left to make it easier on all of us.”

“You heard-” Bellamy breaks off and laughs. “I was talking about Gina. If you’d have continued to listen to the conversation you would’ve heard me tell O that I was falling for you and I was planning to tell you that night. But then you left.” He shakes his head. “But I guess if that’s the only part of the conversation you heard it makes sense that you were upset.” 

“You...wait, what?” Clarke isn’t sure that she heard him correctly.

Bellamy laughs again, taking her face into his hands. “I’m in love with you, you idiot and I was going to tell you last night but you left.”

“I...I’m sorry?” Clarke doesn’t even know how to respond to that. He loves her? He was going to tell her last night? He was talking about Gina? Her mind is spinning. Wait. He loves her? “You love me?”

“That’s what I said.”

A smile lights up Clarke’s face. “I don’t understand how it happened so fast but I love you too.”

“Oh, thank God.” Bellamy’s lips crash down on hers, but he pulls away fairly quickly. “Wait, were you coming back?”

Clarke nods. “I was. Roan and Raven convinced me that I was being an idiot and that I needed to tell you how I felt.”

“Remind me to thank them when I meet them, yeah?” Bellamy leans over and kisses her again. 

Clarke loses herself in the kiss but eventually curses the fact that they are once again in heavy jackets. She wants to get her hands on him, but all she can get is his jacket. Wintertime is not the time for heavy makeout sessions in cars. 

  
When they pull back they’re both breathing heavily. Bellamy presses a kiss to her forehead before glancing out the window. “I was hoping that the snow would slow down. I was barely able to make it out here. I don’t know if I can get us back in one piece.”

“Well, I mean we could just stay here and make out for a little while, right?” Clarke shrugs when Bellamy glances at her. “Hey, don’t look at me like that. It was just a suggestion.”

“I didn’t say that I was against that idea.” Bellamy grins as he leans over to kiss her again, but pulls back when bright lights shine in the back window. “What the hell?”

A moment later the Lincoln appears at the window. “I see you found her, Bellamy.” He nods his head in Clarke’s direction. “Clarke. Octavia called me and since I’ve got the truck I figured I would head out too.” 

“Yeah, but I didn’t know if I could get us back to the cabin in one piece.” Bellamy sighs.

“Well, just follow me and I’ll lead you back, okay?” He glances at Clarke’s car. “I’ll call the sheriff and let him know that we found you and see if he can’t get someone out here to tow your car.”

“Thank you, Lincoln.” Clarke shoots him a grateful smile before Bellamy rolls the window up.

Bellamy reaches over and takes her hand in his, placing a kiss on it. “Rain check on that make-out session?”

“For sure.” Clarke grins as he lets go of her hand to focus on driving them back.

It takes them twice as long as it should, but the snow isn’t slowing down. Eventually, they pull up in front of the cabin. Lincoln climbs out of his truck and heads over to help Clarke out of the car as Bellamy grabs her bag. They all hurry inside to find Octavia and Selene waiting for them.

“Clarke! You’re okay!” Selene runs over and throws her arms around Clarke.

Clarke hugs the young girl close, her eyes falling shut. She’d been so worried when she left this morning that she’d never see her again. She’s glad that isn’t the case. “I’m fine, but aren’t you supposed to be sleeping? How can Santa come if you’re awake.”

“Santa can come later.” Selene nods solemnly. “Aunty O told me that she called him to let him know you were in an accident so I had to stay up later.”

Bellamy shakes his head. “While that is true, it’s time to go to bed now, okay?”

“Sure Daddy.” Selene steps backward. “But there’s something you need to do first.”

“Oh? And what is that?” Bellamy asks.

Selene points over Bellamy and Clarke’s head. “You have to kiss Clarke.”

Clarke looks up to find that they’re standing under the mistletoe. She knows that wasn’t there when she left this morning. She frowns as she looks at Bellamy.

Bellamy holds up his hands. “Don’t look at me. It wasn’t there when I left.”

“Aunty O put it up!” Selene squeals as Octavia tickles her. “You didn’t say I couldn’t tell them!”

Octavia grins at the two of them. “I just figured you might need a little help so I thought I’d give it to you.”

Clarke laughs, turning to look at Bellamy again. “You heard what she said. You have to kiss me.”

“My pleasure.” Bellamy pulls her into his arms, dipping her as his lips crash down onto hers.

They’re both smiling too much for it to be much of a kiss as Octavia and Selene cheered. Octavia offers to put Selene to bed and when Bellamy takes her by the hand and leads her to his room Clarke knows that he’ll more than make up for it.

This might not be the Christmas that she had imagined, but it’s the best Christmas that she’s ever had. She doesn’t know what tomorrow or next month or next year will bring, but she knows that she’s where she belongs and she’s never been happier. 


End file.
